Shilpa Gupta: I Want to Live With No Fear

Interactive Performance

‘I Want to Live With No Fear’ exists as both a performance piece and a photographic series. The thirty inch custom-made balloons are emblazoned with the words “I want to live with no fear” in the artist’s own handwriting. The message takes on an alternative meaning through the person holding it and the context. The art work addresses communal fears and the simultaneous desire and concern over personal privacy.

Shilpa Gupta employs performance, video, photography, sculpture, and new media to realize her artistic vision. Words are carefully intertwined with visual elements in order to provide a deeper level of understanding. Through this synthesis of text and image, the artist tackles issues of war, security, hope, identity, and borders. While Gupta’s work is inspired by life in India, it truly looks at larger global phenomenon.

Gupta (b.1976) lives and works in Mumbai, India where she has studied sculpture at the Sir J. J. School of Fine Arts. She has exhibited internationally and represented India in the 2015 Venice Biennale.